Word to the Wise
Friday, June 5, 2015 - Friday in the 9th Week in Ordinary Time
[Tob 11:5-17 and Mark 12:35-37]"How do the scribes claim that the Christ is the son of David?" [Mark]
JUNE 5, 2015 ST, BONIFACE, martyr
The incident in today's passage seems to continue the various arguments that Jesus was having with religious authorities in Jerusalem. In this case there is a question concerning the broader identity of the Messiah! The scribes want to use the term, "Son of David," to describe the Messiah . Jesus asks how that can be possible when David (the presumed author of the psalms) speaks of the Messiah as "Lord," which makes the son greater than the father. That could not be true in Middle Eastern terms. Jesus is arguing here that the title, "Son of David," is not an adequate description of the Messiah. [Again I experience a bit of irony in that Jesus did indeed know how inadequate the title was, but that goes beyond the text into the broader New Testament story.]
St. Jerome once wrote, "Ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ." This little incident in today's gospel scripture can serve as a reminder that we can do a lot better as Catholics in our knowledge of God's word. The lectionary can't do it all. Steady reading and reflection will help us to know the right way to understand God's word and join the discussion with the scribes! AMEN
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